


Stimulus

by draco_illius_noctis



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Awkward adorable nerds, Cute second dates, First Dates, Fluff, Hawke's Bad Jokes, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-30
Updated: 2017-11-10
Packaged: 2018-03-26 09:45:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3846292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/draco_illius_noctis/pseuds/draco_illius_noctis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>Stimulus: something external that influences an activity</i>
</p><p>
  <i>Salient Stimulus: a stimulus that stands out, that the animal notices more than other environmental stimuli and gets the most attention</i>
</p><p>Anders is a new intern at the Kirkwall Veterinary Hospital who likes to eat his lunch in the nearby park, if only to get an hour's peace and be outdoors. One day he notices an attractive man training his dog nearby. The man soon appears almost every day, with a different dog each time. Anders develops a crush on the handsome, animal-loving man, but despite the urging of his best friend, he does nothing about it; just watches the man be adorable from afar.</p><p>So what happens when he discovers that the man noticed him too?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cute, wallflower Anders is infatuated with handsome, confident Hawke, and thinks someone like Hawke is totally out of his league. This is literally an excuse to surround these two with as many dogs as possible.
> 
> Not beta'd (as usual) so feel free to let me know if there are any mistakes.

Anders unwrapped his sandwich as he settled on the park bench. He had only been interning at the Kirkwall Veterinary Hospital for a couple of weeks now, but quickly realized that getting away during his lunch break was a much needed respite from the insanely busy pace of the clinic. He generally worked 12 hour shifts, and sometimes food and some fresh air were the only things that kept him going. Plus, his food tended to taste better when it wasn’t surrounded by the smell of disinfectant.

He liked this park. It had a winding path that coiled through the trees, usually populated by joggers and mothers pushing strollers. There were several open, grassy areas where people would congregate to play a game of catch or sunbathe.

Anders chose one of the smaller of these areas to eat every day. There were benches sparsely placed around the grass and jogging path, and he was frequently one of only a handful of people who sat there. It was calm and relaxing, and he could attempt to recharge before heading back for another busy afternoon.

He was sitting there today, lunch spread out next to him as he idly flipped through his phone. He was in the middle of taking a quiz to decide what kind of career his cat should have when he saw something flash in front of him. He looked up to see a small dog happily sprinting across the grass, leash flapping in the air as a large, bearded man attempted to catch him.

“T-Bone! Stop, hey! Stop!” the man shouted as he ran past.

Anders couldn’t help but grin. Poor guy. He could hear the shouts fading as the duo ran farther into the park, and he turned back to his quiz. Which was really silly, he thought. Like he would ever let Pounce get a job.

He balled up the wrapper from his sandwich and was moving on to his apple when he saw the man walking back, dog firmly cradled in his arms. He smirked, wondering how the man managed to catch it.

The duo walked to a large empty spot in the grass where the man placed it down, still gripping the leash securely. The puppy started bouncing and barking as soon as its feet hit the ground, tail wagging a mile a minute. Anders wasn’t really a dog person, but he had to admit the puppy was adorable.

Curiosity piqued, he watched as the man took out a small treat and held it in front of the puppy’s nose, focusing its attention before slowly raising the treat in the air.

 _Ahh,_ Anders thought, _he’s teaching it to sit._

The man had clearly done this before, praising the dog as he calmly repeated the motion over and over. Anders watched for about ten minutes as the man guided it, impressed with his skill. The puppy, now totally fixated on the food, was sitting instantly after several minutes of the gesture. The man grinned at the puppy, fawning all over it as they concluded.

Anders smiled as he looked back to his phone. He still had about fifteen more minutes before he needed to head back to the clinic. He glanced up again to see the man now rolling around on the grass as the puppy pounced on his chest and began to lick his face.

He looked closer at the man and realized he was actually quite handsome. He had short, black hair which was slightly swept to the side of his face and a full beard that he kept neatly trimmed. He appeared to be at least a couple of inches taller than himself (it was hard to tell) but definitely much more muscular.

They were clearly enjoying themselves as they played, and Anders felt a flutter in his stomach. He had a soft spot for big, tough-looking men who loved animals. Especially big, _handsome_ , tough-looking men who loved animals.

He was still studying the man when the puppy jumped to the other side, causing the man to roll over and face Anders’ direction. Their eyes met and the man smiled briefly before the puppy ambushed him once again. Anders looked away, blushing slightly at his faux pas.

 _Great, now he probably thinks I’m a creep_ , he sighed. He glanced at his phone again, and decided it was close enough to the end of his break to start his walk back to the clinic. He spared one more quick glance at the pair – who were still rolling around on the grass - before throwing his trash away and heading out of the park.

* * *

The next few days flew by in a blur, and Anders was grateful when it was finally his day off. He had no plans except to sleep late, spend quality time with Pounce and binge watch all the shows he DVR’d in the last week.

He was lounging on the couch, leftover pizza in hand as Pounce laid on his legs, when he heard his phone buzz from the other side of the roam. Groaning, he nudged the unhappy cat off his lap to grab it, seeing he had three missed texts.

One was from his co-worker, Merrill, confirming that he could switch shifts with her the next day. He replied to her quickly, hoping she wouldn't start a conversation. The other two were from his best friend, Isabela. He hadn’t spent much time with her since he started his internship, and he could tell she was feeling neglected.

_**Isabela:** Hellooooo r u alive? I’m boreddddd._

_**Isabela:** Where r u?!? >:( _

He smirked as he typed back.

_**Anders:** I’m home – sry been busy at work. You’re more than welcome to join me and Pounce and be lazy._

He walked back to the couch, the cat happily jumping back onto the warmth of his legs as he unpaused his show. His phone buzzed a minute later.

_**Isabela:** Be there in 20 :)))_

Anders sighed. As much as he loved Isabela, he knew his lazy day wasn’t going to be very lazy once she arrived. He hoped he could at least convince her to stay in and watch some movies, maybe get some takeout, because he really didn’t feel like moving if he didn’t have to.

His doorbell rang about half an hour later, and he got up to let her in.

“Hello, sweet thing!” she exclaimed as she walked in, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. She flopped down on the couch and Pounce marched over to rub against her arm.

“And hello to you too, handsome,” she purred. Pounce loved Isabela.

“Want something to drink?” Anders called, walking into the kitchen.

“No thanks,” came the garbled reply. He walked back in to see Isabela eating the rest of his pizza, legs up on the table as she flipped through the channels.

He sighed, sitting back down next to her with a can of Coke.

“I was eating that,” he glared.

She just grinned in return. “How are you, kitten? I missed you.”

Anders smiled slightly. He had missed her as well, but he had been so exhausted from work he barely had time to think about anything else except sleep and Pounce.

“Tired. Sleepy. Exhausted. Did I mention tired?”

“Poor thing,” Bela laughed. “I hope there’s at least a couple cute doctors at that place, to keep your…motivation up.” She grinned as she took another bite of the pizza.  
Anders’ mind immediately went to the man in the park, and he could feel his face grow hot. His cheeks must have flushed because Isabela’s eyes went wide as she smacked his leg.

“Okay, who is he? I want to know everything.”

He grinned and shook his head. “There is no _he_. There’s no one at work that I’m interested in.”

“Well, you don’t turn red for nothing, kitten. I demand answers.”

“I saw some guy at the park and he was cute,” he confessed. “And he had a dog. That’s literally the extent of our interaction.”

“And you didn’t talk to him?” she pouted. “At least get his number? I have not taught you well.”

That got a laugh out of Anders.

“He was a little…preoccupied,” he smirked. “And I doubt he would have been interested anyway. I think you would have had a much better chance than me.”

Bela frowned as she nudged his knee with hers.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, sweetness. You’re absolutely gorgeous and anyone would be thrilled to have you.”

Anders knew he was fairly handsome, but definitely not gorgeous. He kept himself in good shape, although he could probably stand to eat more. His blonde hair was a little on the long side, enough that he usually wore it pulled back in a half ponytail. Isabela always told him he had a sweet smile and hopeful eyes.

 _You’re a sweet little kitten during the day and a ferocious tiger at night, I just know it_ , she would tell him with a wink. Whatever he was, it still didn’t seem to be enough to find him a relationship. Which was probably just as well.

“Yes, they’re lining up outside the door,” he said sarcastically. “Besides, I don’t have time to date. The clinic takes up all of it and I barely sleep some days.”

“Well, that still doesn’t give you an excuse for not getting his number,” she pouted again. “A handsome man and his puppy meet a dashing veterinarian in the park - love at first sight! I could write the story myself.”

“Please don’t,” Anders laughed. “And really, I’ll probably never see him again so it doesn’t matter.”

* * *

The following day at work was a nightmare. His office focused on preventative care, but they were often the first stop for people with animal emergencies. Today there were several, and Anders was pulled from his regular duties to attend to them. Lunch time came and went, and it wasn’t until well after 2pm that things calmed down enough that he was able to sneak away for a bit. He debated going at all – his shift was over at 6 – but he was too hungry and needed a breath of fresh air.

He settled down on his favorite bench and took a deep breath to relax as he opened his lunch bag. He had been so tired that morning that he couldn’t even remember what he had thrown in there, and laughed when he realized it was just two pieces of fruit and a baggy of baby carrots.

 _At least I’m eating healthy,_ he thought as he peeled a banana.

He surveyed the area as he took a bite, and noticed with surprise that the man from the other day was there again as well. However, this time he was with a slightly larger (and more well-behaved) dog. Anders watched him curiously. If he had more than one dog, why didn’t he just bring them to the park together? He continued eating as he watched the man lead the dog in the same sequence he saw last week, albeit for a much shorter amount of time. But this session he went further, ordering the dog to stay once he completed the sitting motion.

This dog breezed through the training, and before long the man was scratching it and Anders could faintly hear the coos of praise the happy dog was receiving. The man stood up straight and stretched, looking around the area before his eyes fell on Anders once again.

Anders quickly looked down at his phone, pretending to be immersed in something, _anything_ , so it didn’t look like he had been staring. He casually took a bite of his apple, hoping that it appeared as if he hadn’t noticed the other man. His heart was pounding in his chest, and he wasn’t quite sure if it was out of embarrassment or nervousness.

A couple of minutes later, he saw a form out of the corner of his eye, and glanced up quickly. The man had the dog – who was striding perfectly next to him – on its leash, and was walking down the jogging path. The man gave him a friendly smile and nod as he passed, and Anders could only gape at his back as he walked away.

He swiped his phone screen and immediately texted Isabela.

_**Anders:** You’ll never guess who I just saw. The guy from the park!!_

He was grinning like a fool. The guy smiled at him. _Him._

_**Isabela:** DID U GET HIS #??_

He should have known that was coming.

_**Anders:** No…I was too busy staring at him like a loser._

He sighed. He probably lost his only other chance to speak to the man, and he was so flustered he couldn’t even nod a hello back. He groaned as he drooped his head.

_**Isabela:** >:(((( I am SO not happy with you_

He glanced at the time and realized he needed to finish up and head back to the clinic in a few minutes. Time flies when you’re staring like a fool at friendly, hot men.

_**Anders:** I’m not happy with me, either. But I need to go back to work now._

He tucked his phone in his pocket, ignoring the buzzes he felt a few seconds later. He would deal with Bela after work. Or tomorrow. Whenever he could get his brain to function again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What? I have two other series I'm working on at the same time? Pffffft. 
> 
> So I used to train dogs part-time which is where the title and definition come from. It's basically a fancy way of describing the thing that the dog (or whatever animal you're training) focuses on, such as verbal cues or noises. Or in this case, Hawke being the incentive for Anders to go to the same park every day. Not implying that Anders is "trained" in any way, but I think you get the point, lol. 
> 
> Comments/critiques/kudos/all that good stuff always welcome!


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What if...all those accidental glances Anders noticed weren't accidental at all?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to [blehgah](http://archiveofourown.org/users/blehgah/pseuds/blehgah) for being my beta! Seriously, it might have taken me another month to finish it without their help.

Garrett had first noticed the cute, lanky blond man one afternoon as he was leaving the park. The man was just arriving, staring dreamily into the distance and paying no mind to anyone as he made his way to a bench. Garrett paused in spite of the insistent tugging from the leash ahead of him, watching as the man sat, briefly raising his face towards the sun with a small smile before taking out his lunch.

He was enthralled almost immediately, wondering whether he should turn back and attempt to strike up a conversation. The man appeared to be close to his own age, but of slighter build. He was also wearing scrubs.

 _Cute and a doctor_ , he mused. _Or at least a nurse._

Glancing at his watch, he realized staying wasn’t an option; the dog pulling him forward was due to be picked up in a few minutes, and he needed to be on his way.

He felt a touch of regret as he walked away, already coming to terms with the idea of never seeing the man again. He knew it was a long shot, but he would have to hope he ran into him another time.

Arriving at the park a few days later – this time with his own puppy – he saw the blond sitting on the bench, looking at his phone as he ate his lunch. Garrett was surprised at the flutter of excitement that formed in his stomach. He had seen this guy once, knew literally nothing about him, and yet here he was, swooning like a teenager.

He didn’t want to make a beeline for the bench, so he slowed down his gait a bit, moving almost obnoxiously slow as he walked further into the area. He decided to play it casual – maybe roam around a bit, and then walk by the blond and say hi.

Unfortunately, his dog had other plans. In his distraction, Garrett loosened his grip on the leash, and the puppy lunged forward and across the grass.

 _Shit,_ he thought, dashing after the dog. Hopefully the guy didn’t notice his ungraceful sprint across the lawn; this was definitely not how he wanted to make a first impression.

 _Damn, this dog is fast,_ he thought, huffing as he ran after it. The puppy managed to run to an entirely different area of the park before some kind soul was quick enough to grab him and hand him back to Garrett once he finally caught up.

He was exhausted as he made his way back to his original destination, making sure the little guy squirming in his arms didn’t get loose again.

 _Definitely need to start working out_ , he laughed to himself, embarrassed at how quickly he became winded. Maybe doing some push-ups in the park would attract a certain someone’s attention? It was definitely a thought.

He knew he was tempting fate, but Garrett decided that today might not be the best time to approach the other man. He was pretty winded after that chase and could only imagine how disheveled he must look.

Plus, he had to consider the fact that maybe the blond wasn’t into guys. He could be barking up the wrong tree…no pun intended.

 _I bet he would appreciate my horrible jokes_ , Garrett sighed.  Maybe it was a better idea to test the waters a bit and not bombard him right away.

He decided he might as well do a little training since he was already there. No point in wasting the day. He looked over at one point and noticed the man glance in their direction with a small smile on his face before looking away.

Guys playing with cute dogs were really attractive, right? Maybe he could work this to his favor.

 _He could be a dog person._ There was always the possibility the man would approach him first.

He continued playing, T-Bone enthusiastically jumping and licking wherever he could reach as Garrett laughed. They were pretty obvious; he was sure half the people in the park were looking at them by now. Hopefully, the blond included.

Sure enough, the man was openly staring at this point, the smile still on his lips. This time Garrett didn’t turn away, locking eyes with him as the man’s expression turned from amusement to embarrassment. He hurriedly gathered his trash, deliberately keeping his gaze away as he prepared to leave.

 _Interesting_ , Garrett thought, smiling. It wasn’t until after the man left that he realized he just let him walk away…again. For someone who wanted to introduce himself, he was doing a really bad job.

He arrived the next day – this time with a client’s dog – before the blond did. Or, at least, he assumed before; he had no idea if the man was a regular, or if he just happened to get lucky twice in a row. Regardless, he had work to do, so he set about his training and completely lost track of time.

It probably wasn’t more than 20 minutes or so before they stopped to take a break. Garrett’s mind had turned to other thoughts, going over his plans for the rest of the day and whether or not he wanted to splurge on Chinese for dinner.

He did a double take as he stretched, noticing the blond was, indeed, back for a third day. Their eyes met for a second time, and once again the other man’s eyes darted away quickly, looking down at what Garrett assumed was his phone.

He smirked as he watched for a few moments; there was definitely something going on here. Even from far away he could see the man’s concerted effort to appear busy, and he wasn’t doing a very good job of it.

 _One more try_ , he told himself. If the man gave him a positive reaction, he would introduce himself. The odds had been in his favor three times, but he didn’t want to keep pushing his luck and risk never seeing him again.

Garrett tugged at the leash, leading the dog to the walking path that surrounded the area. He decided to start a decent distance away from the bench, repeating his actions from the day prior so it would look more natural that they were walking past. He slowed down as they got closer, amused that the man still seemed determined to keep his eyes on his phone and nowhere else.

Just as they were a few paces away, he saw the blond look up, surprise written all over his face as Garrett approached.

 _Perfect_ , he thought, smiling and nodding as he strolled past. The man didn’t return the gesture, staring wide-eyed as they walked away. Garrett grinned wider; the man was even more attractive up close, his face a mixture of hopefulness and bewilderment.

His mind wandered as he continued walking, wondering just how composed the man really was. He was starting to daydream about what other expressions he could coax out of him.

He shook his head, dragging his mind back from the gutter and to the matter at hand. Nothing was going to happen if they didn’t actually speak to each other. He decided he would complete the lap and then “take a break” on the bench, casually introduce himself, and go from there.

He glanced back in the blond’s direction after about half a lap, lost in his own thoughts once more. It was to his horror, then, that he realized the conversation was not going to begin that day either. The man was swiftly walking towards the exit, head down and hands in his pants pockets, apparently leaving for the day.

There was no way he was going to be able to catch up without running, and he imagined that would most likely frighten the man off.

 _I guess anyone would be a little scared to see a large man and a dog sprinting right at them,_ he thought grimly, kicking himself for not acting sooner.

That was it. The next time he saw the man, he wouldn’t hesitate.

* * *

The next few days went much the same for Anders – aside from the non-stop rain. Rain meant no trips to the park at lunch, and he was forced to eat in the break room. He was joined for two of the days by Merrill, who was very sweet but… a little odd. He was polite to her, mainly because she went out of her way to welcome him, but he kept his distance.

Finally, towards the end of the week, the rain let up. His day hadn’t been too bad, but the weather was beautiful, and he was looking forward to being outside.

He walked briskly to the park, happy to be back in the sunshine and away from the dreariness of the past few days. Plus, the clinic always smelled a little worse when it rained… wet-dog-smell seemed to stick to everything.

As he sat down on his usual bench, he casually scanned the area for any sight of the man. He tried not to look like he was seeking someone out, but after a couple of sweeps Anders realized he wasn’t there. He felt a wave of disappointment as he took out his phone to text Isabela.

_**Anders:** No guy in the park today :( _

He sighed as he took out his sandwich. It didn’t matter. All the guy did was smile at him, it’s not like they had a _thing_. He just hadn’t realized how much he was looking forward to seeing him again, especially after jetting away so quickly the last time. A smile was big progress for him, and he had a feeling he blew any small chance he might have had.

His phone buzzed, startling him out of his self-pitying thoughts.

_**Isabela:** BOOOOOOOOOOOO. Sorry kitten :(((_

Anders smiled a little; at least he had Isabela. He started swiping through his phone, checking his email and a couple of news sites as he enjoyed his lunch. He felt more relaxed already, just being out there.

He was in the middle of an article when he heard a commanding voice from off to his right. He looked up to see the man walking towards his usual area, a different dog accompanying him.

“Come on buddy, let’s go,” the man said, pulling the dog away from a child in a stroller who was eagerly reaching for it. He smiled apologetically at the child’s mother as he gently tugged the dog’s leash to guide him away.

Anders smiled to himself as he felt a flutter of excitement in his stomach. He looked back at his phone, hoping he appeared nonchalant as he continued eating his sandwich.

After what he thought was a reasonable amount of time, he glanced up towards the lawn to see what the man was doing today. He squinted, looking around, but there was no sign of either him or the dog. His stomach sank at the realization, all the excitement from moments ago gone.  His shoulders slumped as he looked around one more time, hoping on the off chance he had just overlooked them.

Then, off to the side, there they were.

The man was walking the dog in his direction, but it kept pulling on the leash to run ahead. He would stop, patiently calling the dog back, and then walk a few more paces.

Anders looked away, not wanting to appear like he was staring (again), and thankfully he felt his phone buzz once more. Texts started appearing one after another from Isabela. She apparently had run into some trouble the night before at a bar and felt the need to regale him with the story at that exact moment. He understood her intentions – she was trying to distract him, he was sure – and it seemed to work, as he didn’t notice the body that suddenly appeared at his side.

“Is anyone sitting here?” he heard a deep voice ask. Anders looked up, startled when he saw the man standing next to him.

“Oh, uh, no,” he replied, moving his lunch bag and drink over a bit even though there was plenty of room on the other side of the bench.

The man sat, the dog sprawling peacefully at his feet, as he looked at Anders. He could feel himself blush under the man’s steady gaze, and tried to look busy as he fiddled with his phone. Isabela was going to have to wait.

“I’m Garrett,” the man – Garrett – said, holding out a hand.

“Anders.” Garrett had a firm handshake to accompany his intense stare.

“I noticed that we always seem to be here at the same time, so I thought I would introduce myself,” Garrett smiled.

Anders smiled shyly back at him. “Yeah, I, um, work at the vet clinic a few blocks over. I come here for lunch when I can,” he said. Feeling an odd rush of confidence, he continued, gesturing at the animal at Garrett’s feet. “I noticed you have a lot of dogs.”

Garrett chuckled. “Oh, they aren’t mine. Well, one is, but not the rest. I just train them.”

Anders tilted his head slightly. “I’ve been coming here for a few months, but I’ve only seen you recently.” He regretted it as soon as the words came out of his mouth.

 _God, I must sound like such a stalker_ , he thought.

Luckily, Garrett just smiled. “I used to practice that way,” he replied, gesturing off to another area of the park. “But it started getting crowded and I didn’t want to overwhelm the dogs too quickly. I guess you must know a lot about that, huh? Working with animals all day.”

Anders just murmured in acknowledgment as they both grew silent. He had no idea what to talk about – conversation didn’t always come so easy - so he pointed at the dog at Garrett’s feet again.

“Is this one yours?”

The dog opened his eyes as if he knew Anders was talking about him.

Garrett looked over as well. “Nope, this is a client’s. Mine is a puppy, about three months old.” He paused. “I remember bringing him here right around when I first noticed you.”

Anders raised his eyebrows in surprise as the increasingly attractive man turned red, realizing what he had just blurted out. Garrett shifted his gaze to the side, avoiding eye contact.

“I mean, uh…” he stumbled. “I meant since – oh shit, fine. I noticed you.” He grinned at Anders, still slightly red in the face.

Anders laughed, feeling emboldened by the news. No one ever noticed him, a fact that he had come to terms with and embraced long ago. And the fact that a man like _this_ \- handsome, well-built, clearly charismatic – would take any notice of him at all was a huge boost to his ego.

“I’m flattered,” he replied, brushing a stray piece of hair out of his face.

“Well, now that that’s out in the open…” Garrett chuckled.

Out of habit, Anders glanced down at his phone and realized with alarm that he was due back at the clinic in only a few minutes.

“Crap, I need to get back to work,” he said hastily, gathering his trash together.

“Oh,” Garrett said with surprise (and, Anders thought, disappointment). “Sorry, I didn’t realize. Will you be here tomorrow?”

He was a little taken aback at Garrett’s forwardness, but he was pleased nonetheless.

“As long as the weather holds out, I will be,” he replied, standing. He really didn’t want to rush away like this, but the thought of getting into trouble at the clinic was even less appealing.

“Okay, till tomorrow then,” Garrett smiled, standing as well. The dog also rose to its feet, looking at Garrett expectantly.

Anders smiled shyly as he nodded. “See you,” he said half-heartedly as he turned to leave. He glanced back once and saw Garrett gathering the leash, preparing to move on as well. He lifted his hand in farewell as he gave Anders a playful grin. Anders gave a small wave back before leaving the park, unable to wipe the elated smile from his face.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GUYS! I'm so sorry this took a month to update...really. Between busy at work, working on other fics and having massive writer's block with this chapter, it was slow going. I'm on the fence about my original plans for this story and how long I want it to be, so I need to rework my outline a bit. It definitely (hopefully) won't take another month!
> 
> As usual, comments and the like are always welcome :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garrett and Anders have their lunch date in the park.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, look at this thing! It only took me 11 months to update! Better late than never?
> 
> Not beta'd (or even proofed more than twice) so I apologize for any mistakes and the lack of pretty language.

“Okay, dish,” Isabela prompted that evening. She stretched out her legs across Anders’ lap as they both ate from their takeout containers.

“Well,” Anders swallowed. “He asked to sit next to me and just…started talking.”

He shrugged. Now that he’d had time to dwell on the brief interaction (repeatedly) throughout the rest of his shift it seemed a lot less dramatic than it felt at the time. No less amazing, but hard to describe to someone who probably hoped they made out five seconds after saying hello.

“We introduced ourselves and, um,” Anders paused, a faint blush in his cheeks. “He said he had noticed me a couple times before.”

“Anders!” Bela hooted, kicking his leg. “He’s totally been checking you out! Tell me you gave him your number this time.”

“I didn’t think of it,” he replied sheepishly. “I was late heading back to work and kind of rushed out of there.”

Isabela let out a groan, slumping back against her side of the couch.

“But he did ask if I was going to be there tomorrow. That’s good, right?”

“That’s amazing, kitten!” she exclaimed, perking back up. “You’re going, right? I’ll drag you there myself if I have to.”

“As long as it’s not raining,” Anders confirmed. Although, at this rate, he would probably go and sit under an umbrella if it meant seeing the other man.

 _Garrett_ , he reminded himself. The man had a name now.

“Well,” Isabela declared, clapping her hands. “What time are we going? I need to meet this dream man.”

“No!” Anders looked at her in horror. “It’s too soon, Bela. I don’t want to…overwhelm him.”

“Hmmm,” she replied thoughtfully, putting down her food. “Good point. I _can_ be quite awe-inspiring. At least let me give you some tips.”

“Like?” Anders looked at her suspiciously.

“Let me pick out your outfit, for starters,” she suggested, jumping up from the couch and heading towards his bedroom.

“I’m wearing scrubs, Bela,” Anders called to her, scrambling to follow. “There’s not much to choose from.”

“How many pairs of cat scrubs do you own?” came Bela’s muffled voice from inside the closet. “Really, Anders.”

“It makes our patients happy,” he said defensively.

Bela turned and rolled her eyes at him before resuming her perusal of his clothes.

“I don’t think the cats care, sweetness. Now our handsome stranger, on the other hand…”

Anders sighed, leaning against the wall as she took out shirt after shirt, holding them up to his chest for scrutiny.

“Don’t you have anything a little…snug?” she sighed. “Maybe something that shrunk in the wash?”

“So you want me to show up in high waters and a shirt I can barely pull over my head,” he said dryly. “Brilliant idea.”

“No, you know, just something a little tight in the chest.” She started gesturing around his torso. “Maybe we could take one of them in? Show off your…well not _muscles_ , exactly…”

“Okay, okay, I get the hint.” Anders batted her hands away, fixing her with a teasing glare. “He’s much more built than I am, anyway. I can’t compete.”

“You’ve filled out some,” Bela purred, wrapping her arms around him from behind. “And I bet you’re cuter.”

“I disagree with that statement also,” Anders laughed, extricating himself from her grip. “Oh, how about I wear these?”

He walked back over to the rack, pulling out the only pair of dog-covered scrubs he owned.

“Perfect,” she approved, tossing the rest of the clothes haphazardly back into the closet. “Now, what about your hair?”

“Um,” Anders frowned. “I wear my hair the same every day. Pulled back, so it doesn’t get in my face at work.”

“Can’t you wear it down tomorrow? Just once? Let him see how nice you look like that.”

“As if I don’t look nice the rest of the time?” he smirked.

Bela waved the comment off before fussing with his hair, pulling it out of the rubber band holding it back.

“Just…do this,” she said after a moment. Anders glanced in the mirror and saw she hadn’t really done anything spectacular, but he had to admit he did look a little better.

“Alright,” he sighed. “Hair down and dog scrubs, I’m set.”

“Noooo,” Bela drawled, pulling him into the kitchen. “You’re also going to make extra lunch. That way you can open your bag and be like, ‘oh no, look at all this extra lunch. Want to share it and then go make out under that tree?’”

Anders burst out laughing as Bela beamed with pride.

“That is so ridiculous, I’m not even going to comment on it.”

He did, however, think about it. His lunches usually consisted of whatever food he grabbed as he was running out of the door. Maybe it would be nice to have a real meal for once.

“Okay, so what should I make?”

* * *

After a night filled with fitful sleep, the next day rolled around and promised to be bright and sunny, much to Anders’ relief. The morning seemed to drag by impossibly slow, made even worse by the fact that he wasn’t really that busy. He glanced at the clock every five minutes, willing time to move faster so he could get to the park. 

He realized that he had never really set a time with Garrett, just a vague “lunchtime” promise. He started to worry, hoping that Garrett would just assume the same time as the day before, but there was no guarantee Anders would be able to be there right at that time. And making him wait would be pretty rude.

Anders pushed the thought from his mind as he bolted out of the clinic a few minutes ahead of schedule, wanting to give himself as much time as possible at the park. He had let the rest of the staff know he was running a few errands during lunch, so if he happened to be a bit late, well…he would make up for it another time.

He stopped along the way, checking his hair in the glass of a bakery to make sure it hadn’t gotten too messed up over the course of the day. Finally satisfied, he slowed to a walk to try to appear as nonchalant as possible once he arrived.

_Well, this is as good as it’s going to get._

He was pleased to see Garrett already in the park when he arrived, rolling around on the grass with what Anders now knew to be his puppy.

 _And I was worried I was going to look like a mess_ , he thought with a wry grin.

He took a seat on his usual bench, watching the man and dog play. It only took a minute for Garrett to look over, face lighting up when he saw Anders had arrived. He tugged on the leash, the puppy happily prancing after him as they made their way over.

“Hey,” Garrett grinned, sitting down. The puppy jumped, his front two paws on the bench in between them.

“T-Bone, _down_.”

The puppy complied, looking up at Garrett and waiting for his next command. Anders couldn’t help but snicker.

“What’s so funny?” the other man asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Your dog’s name is T-Bone?”

“What, you don’t think he looks like a T-Bone?” Garrett grinned and Anders felt himself flush, turning his head towards the dog instead.

“No, he does,” Anders agreed. “It’s just…unusual.”

“I’m sure you hear a lot worse at your job.”

Anders laughed at that, nodding his head.

“That we do,” he grinned, absentmindedly pushing some hair out of his face.

“Your hair looks nice like that.”

Anders looked at him in confusion, having forgotten he had even done anything different to it. The blush in his cheeks grew darker, he was sure, and he just gave Garrett a shy smile in return.

“You have a nice laugh too,” Garrett continued, smiling softly. “I’ll have to do my best to hear more of it.”

Anders felt a fluttering in his chest, thoughts immediately going to the _other_ kinds of noises he’d like for Garrett to pull from him. He shifted slightly in his seat, trying to clear his mind before other parts of his body decided to react as well.

“Hey, I’m sorry if I’m being a creep or something,” Garrett said suddenly, worried look on his face.

“What?” Anders asked in surprise, finally looking back at him. “No, no, you aren’t at all. I just, um…don’t get flirted with very often.” He gave Garrett a sheepish smile. “I might be a little out of practice.”

Garrett’s face brightened, smile returning to his face as he slid slightly closer. The puppy was now lying at his feet, chewing on a stick and completely disinterested in the pair.

“I still find that hard to believe,” Garrett teased.

“Believe what you want,” Anders chuckled. “But it’s true.”

Remembering the other reason why he was there, he finally reached into his lunch bag, pulling out the rather large sandwich he had made the night before. Even if he wasn’t trying to woo the other man with food it still would have been a bit much to eat alone. Isabela had even baked him brownies for the occasion (he hadn’t even realized she knew _how_ to bake) and he had a rather sizeable portion of that in his bag, as well.

Anders glanced over at Garrett, noticing the other man didn’t have anything with him.

“Did you eat?” he asked.

“Nah, I’ll just grab something on the way home.”

“Take half of mine.” Anders took half of the sandwich, holding out the other half towards Garrett.

“Oh no, I couldn’t do that,” Garrett said, waving his hand and giving Anders a once-over. “You need it more than I do.”

Anders lifted an eyebrow and fought back a laugh as he watched the other man’s face go from flirtatious to horrified in a split second.

“Shit, I didn’t mean… _shit_ , sorry, that was really rude. You probably think I’m an ass now.”

His face fell and he let out a deep sigh, averting his eyes from Anders completely. 

“Appearances can be deceiving, you know,” Anders remarked casually, holding the sandwich out once more. “I’m much more impressive out of my clothes than in them.”

 _Where the hell did that come from?_ Anders thought, mentally kicking himself and bracing for the laughter he was sure was coming. _I barely said anything and still managed to make a fool of myself._

He sighed, willing himself to look back at the other man to see his reaction. Garrett was gaping at him now, still red in the cheeks but he hadn’t replied or made a move to take the sandwich. Anders cleared his throat.

“And um, no, I don’t think you’re an ass,” he added shyly.

Garrett’s face broke into a delighted grin as he finally accepted the food.

“Good to know,” he said, taking a bite. “On both counts.”

Anders looked away, blushing further as he took a bite as well. They settled into comfortable chit-chat, Anders explaining his work at the clinic and Garrett about some of his clients. He accepted part of the brownie that Anders offered without hesitation. Anders made a note to buy Isabela dinner one night coming up in thanks.

“You got quiet, did I say something?” Garrett asked, shaking Anders from his thoughts.

“Oh,” Anders laughed. “Nothing important, just that I need to thank my friend for making these things.” He held up what was left of his brownie before popping it into his mouth.

“Send them my regards as well,” Garrett said, mouth full.

Anders laughed, feeling lighter than he had in a long time. He still couldn’t believe his luck…how had this gorgeous man not only taken an interest in _him_ , of all people, but also turn out to be a sweet, funny, interesting person too?

 _And I didn’t manage to screw things up_ , he congratulated himself. _Maybe there’s hope for me yet._

“So, um,” Garrett said abruptly, fidgeting a little in his seat. “This went…well, didn’t it?”

Anders looked up, noting the nervousness on the other man’s face.

“Yes?” he replied, suddenly worried. He fiddled with the bag in his lap to distract himself, feeling the red creep into his face. “I had a really nice time.”

“Then why don’t you let me take you out on a real date?” Garrett asked. He looked so hopeful, yet so anxious. So endearing that Anders wanted to kiss the worry from his face and then invite him home to kiss some more.

And yet…was he serious?

“Really?”

“I mean, it’s totally okay if you don’t want to,” Garrett said quickly. “No pressure or anything. I just thought since we seemed to get along— “

“That’s not what I meant,” Anders interrupted. “I just…you want to go out with _me_?”

“Well, I’m not talking to T-Bone,” Garrett chuckled. The dog looked up upon hearing his name, wagging his tail slightly. “So yeah, I want to take you on a date. I like you.”

Anders flushed deeper, sure his face must be beet red by now. He couldn’t keep the huge, silly grin from his face, nodding his head happily.

“I’d love to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had some free time at work and banged out the entire thing in a few hours after almost a year of not being able to write it at all, lol. I want to go back at some point and clean up the first two chapters also, but for right now I'm just happy I was able to keep it going because I really don't want to give it up. I don't know how many chapters it'll end up being but I definitely have at least one more outlined. 
> 
> Thanks for reading (and being patient), comments, etc. are always appreciated :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garrett and Anders go on their first real date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm posting this literally one year to the day of the last chapter. 
> 
> I REFUSE TO ABANDON THIS FIC.

“T-Bone, can you _not_ use my good shoes as a chew toy?” Garrett sighed, pulling a shoe from the puppy’s mouth. T-Bone made a half-hearted attempt to grab it back and failed, falling on his face.

A chuckle from the doorway drew his attention a second later, the puppy darting to the large man leaning against the frame.

“Are you picking on the dog again?” Carver scolded, bending down to scratch behind his ears.

Garrett scowled at him, turning his attention back to the clothes laid out on his bed.

“He was eating my shoe,” he replied. “I’m already running late, I don’t need to buy new shoes on top of it.”

“And what’s the flavor-of-the-week’s name this time?”

Garrett glared at his brother over his shoulder, even though the other man was still focused on the puppy.

“I don’t have flavors-of-the-week, thank you,” he grumbled. “Besides, this guy’s different. He’s a _doctor_.”

“Really?” Carver sounded impressed.

“Uh…” Garrett hedged, turning back to his clothes. “I don’t actually know. I know he works at the vet clinic and he _looks_ like a doctor, so I just assumed…”

“Nice,” Carver snorts. “I hope you got his name, at least.”

“Don’t get pissy because you can’t get a date of your own,” Garrett shot back. He refused to let Carver ruin his excitement for the evening. Part of him thought he would only have one chance with his handsome park stranger and he didn’t want to ruin it sulking at his brother.

Garrett snuck a peak at Carver in the mirror, smiling a bit when he noticed the flush in his face. He must have hit a sore spot.

“Whatever,” Carver mumbled. “I’m not waiting up for you.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it!” Garrett called after him with a grin as Carver stalked back down the hall.

He turned his attention back to the array of shirts laid out before him, trying to decide which would impress his date most. He smiled to himself, remembering the blush in Anders’ cheeks every time he said anything remotely teasing or flirty. He hoped he could pull a few more of those adorably shy smiles from him that evening as well.

He eventually settled on a nice pair of dark jeans and a blue button-up that he hoped brought out the color of his eyes, leaving the top few buttons undone on purpose. The shirt was already snug across his broad shoulders, but it couldn’t hurt, right? Maybe Anders was a chest hair kind of guy.

Most of all, he wanted to do things _right_. He had a feeling if he came on too strong, Anders would bolt. He wanted to get to know the other man, and that might take more restraint in his… _eager_ attitude. He was determined to go at Anders’ pace – let the other man set the tone.

 _It will be worth it_ , he thought, giving himself one more once-over in the mirror before heading out. 

* * *

“I am _so_ excited for you, kitten!” Isabela squealed, bouncing slightly on Anders’ bed.

Anders fumbled with the buttons on his shirt, blushing as he shot her a look.

“You’re making me nervous,” he chided. “ _More_ nervous.”

“You look amazing,” Bela scoffed. “He’s going to be head-over-heels for you.”

“Hopefully,” Anders murmured, smiling a little to himself. He still couldn’t believe this date was even happening.

Garrett had texted him a couple of times since their last meeting in the park, setting up a time and place for them to meet. Anders would honestly have been fine with anything the other man picked, but he didn’t want to come off as desperate, so they bounced a few ideas around before eventually deciding on a pub downtown.

“You are so _cute_ ,” Bela squealed, cutting into his thoughts. “Look at you, all blushing and bashful. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen you this way.”

“When was the last time I went on a date?” Anders retorted with a wry smile. “A _real_ one.”

Isabela paused, making a dramatic showing of pondering his words.

“Karl?”

Anders nodded, looking away as Isabela’s face softened.

“Kitten…”

“It’s fine,” Anders cut in. He didn’t bring it up to garner sympathy. “I’m just using it to prove a point. It’s been _that_ long.”

“Well,” she began, giving him a sly grin. “I also remember _another_ Anders. Pre-vet school Anders.”

Anders groaned, rolling his eyes but he smiled as Bela’s grin grew.

“You remember,” she purred.

“When I had much less discerning taste.”

“I like to think of it as ‘fucked anything that moved,’” she mused.

“I wasn’t _that_ bad!” Anders laughed.

“Hmmm…that’s not the way I remember it,” she winked. “You need to get back into that mindset, sweets.”

Anders shook his head, sobering.

“That’s not what I’m looking for,” he replied. “You know I stopped all that once I met Karl.”

“And Karl decided his job was more important than your relationship,” Bela shot back. Anders flinched at the words, prompting her to get up and wrap her arms around him.

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, resting her chin on his shoulder. “But you know what I mean. You can’t go into this automatically assuming he’s another Karl. He might just be looking for something casual. I don’t want your heart broken because you expected too much.”

Anders sighed, patting her hands so she’d let him go. He turned back to his mirror, running his fingers through his hair.

“I don’t think that’s what he wants,” he said after a few moments. “Just to fool around, I mean. I don’t get that vibe from him.”

“Good!” Bela smiled.

“But…” Anders paused, biting his bottom lip.

“But what, sweets?”

“I don’t know if I have _time_ to make this a regular thing,” he said. “I work so many hours at the clinic and I’m so exhausted by the time I get home…”

“ _Anders_ ,” Bela groaned, flopping back on the bed.

“It’s true!” he insisted. “You know how little I’m around. What if I’m…what if it’s not enough for him?”

He felt his face flush again, ducking his head a little as Bela sat back up.

“Oh, kitten,” she sighed. “He _likes_ you. Don’t stress so much.”

Anders opened his mouth to reply but Bela held a hand up, stopping him.

“Just go on one date,” she continued. “Feel him out. Ask him the important questions but don’t bombard him. See how things go.”

She smiled, and Anders found himself returning it.

“You know I’ll be here to listen to you gush or listen to you cry, either way,” she teased. “And I, for one, think you’re _more_ than enough for anyone.”

Anders chuckled, shaking his head as he made his way over to the bed and pulled her into a hug.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you,” he murmured.

“You’d have to find someone else to take care of your cat, for one.”

“Oh no, Pounce!” Anders moaned, looking in the direction of the living room.

“Anders, you can’t bring your cat on your date.”

Anders bit his lip again, still staring, as Bela sighed loudly behind him.

“How about you text me if you don’t plan on coming home tonight?” she suggested. “I can stop by in the morning and make sure he’s okay. Even though,” she added, “he’s a _cat_ and will be perfectly fine on his own for one night.”

“He’s lonely without me,” Anders pouted.

“Wellll,” Bela drawled, “maybe if you play your cards right he’ll have a little puppy brother to keep him company soon.”

Anders blushed, making a little flustered huffing noise in response before turning back to mirror.

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” he said. “I need to get through dinner first.”

* * *

“So _then_ I tell him, ‘one of my _canines_ is loose!’ Get it? Cause he was my dentist?”

Anders covered his face with his hand, shaking silently with laughter.

“I can’t believe I’m laughing at such a horrible joke,” he smiled a moment later, shaking his head. Garrett beamed at him from across the booth.

“It’s because I’m so charming,” he grinned. “I haven’t even pulled out my best material yet.”

Anders groaned, holding up his hands.

“Please,” he laughed. “I don’t know if I can take anymore.”

Garrett leaned forward, propping his chin in his hand as he smiled with unabashed affection.

“But I told you I like hearing you laugh,” he teased. “Your eyes do this little crinkle thing in the corners and it’s adorable.”

“Oh…I, um…” Anders stuttered, blushing furiously. He fumbled with his napkin, twisting it in his lap as he looked anywhere except at the man seated across from him.

Luckily, he was saved at that moment by their server returning with their drinks. Both thanked her, although Anders could feel Garrett’s eyes on him the entire time.

“Hey,” Garrett murmured, nudging his foot with his own. Anders finally glanced his way, surprised at the worry on the man’s face.

“I’m not weirding you out, am I?” Garrett asked, mouth twisting with concern. “Just tell me to stop if I am. I won’t be offended.”

“You’re not,” Anders reassured him. He huffed out a small laugh. “I told you…it’s just been a while since I’ve done this.”

Garrett smiled as Anders took a sip of his drink but didn’t reply. They sat in comfortable silence for a few moments, and Anders took the opportunity to take in his surroundings a little more. He hadn’t been to The Hanged Man before, although Isabela visited fairly often.

He could see why Garrett chose it, however. If he had to describe the type of room he could picture the other man relaxing in, this would be it. Rich wood throughout, comfortable leather-padded seats…an air of traditional masculinity but not overbearing. There was a warm, inviting feel to it rather than one that shouted _I’m better than you_. Anders could appreciate that…as far from his own style as it was.

He could also very much appreciate the man sitting across from him at the moment. Garrett was wearing a light blue shirt that perfectly offset the deeper blue of his eyes. It was also – he thought – purposely left slightly unbuttoned so that a hint of his chest hair was peaking out. Anders felt his eyes drawn to it repeatedly, as much as he tried to hide it.

“So…tell me more about yourself,” Garrett finally spoke up. He smiled as Anders looked over at him. “As cliché as that sounds.”

“What do you want to know?” Anders asked with a smile of his own, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear. From the way Garrett’s gaze followed his movement, he was happy he decided to wear it down again.

“Tell me about your job,” Garrett prompted. “How long have you been working there?”

“Well, technically I’m just in my residency,” Anders began, twirling his spoon on the table. “But I’ve been there for about five months now.”

Garrett’s face fell, although he tried to hide it.

“How long do they usually last?” he asked, giving Anders a miserable look. “Like six months or something?”

“More like three years,” Anders laughed, the other man perking up at the words. “I'm specializing in small animal emergency and critical care and the program lasts at least three years.”

“And all three years are here?”

Anders nodded.

“You’re stuck with me,” he teased lightly.

“Exactly what I was hoping for,” Garrett laughed. “Now I have a new favorite vet to visit.”

Anders grinned and the mood lightened after that, and he found conversing easier. He discovered that Garrett had twin siblings – Bethany and Carver – and that he currently lived with Carver. And T-Bone, of course. He told Garrett about Pounce and Isabela (mostly about Pounce) along with some stories from the clinic.

“So, is dog training all you do?” he asked. Garrett blinked at him in surprise for a minute and the reality of how it sounded hit him.

“Shit, sorry,” Anders cringed. “I didn’t mean it like that. I just meant like…do you do other things with the dogs besides train them?”

He sighed, convinced he had ruined the evening, but Garrett only smiled softly at him.

“I don’t usually like bringing it up on a first date,” he began. “But my family has…money. So I don’t really _need_ to work.” He shrugged. “I do what I love and hopefully help some people out.”

Anders raised his eyebrows, staring for a moment before shoving a piece of chicken into his mouth, using the brief chewing time to think. Thankfully, he was spared as Garrett continued.

“And to actually answer your question, yes and no,” he smiled. “I train the dogs, but I also walk them, bathe them if they need it, things like that. And I have sessions with the owners so they know the commands also. No point in training a dog if I’m the only one they respond to.”

Anders chuckled at that and felt some of the weight lift. Garrett didn’t _seem_ offended, so that was a good sign. Maybe he could just…circumvent the whole money thing. Forget he said anything at all.

“Well, you look like you’re good at what you do,” he offered.

“I’m good at a lot of things,” Garrett grinned with a wink. Anders felt his face flush again and he dropped his fork, hiding his face behind his hands once more.

“Can we go to a movie next time?” came his muffled laugh. “I can’t believe how often I’ve turned red tonight.”

“You want to go on another date?”

Anders peeked through his fingers to see Garrett grinning ecstatically in his direction.

“I didn’t mean to be presumptuous,” Anders stammered, looking away. “I’m a mess, as you can clearly see. I just meant—“

“I think you’re great,” Garrett gushed. “I’m having a really great time with you. Really. It’s been great.”

“Okay,” Anders chuckled. He sat up a little straighter, running a hand through his hair as he sighed. “I don’t know _why_ , though.”

“I like you,” Garrett said simply, with a smile. “You’re interesting and sweet and obviously love animals, which is important to me.”

Anders grinned at that, which only seemed to give the other man more confidence as he plowed on.

“And you put up with my bad jokes and my endless T-Bone stories.” He took a breath, biting his bottom lip, and Anders could have sworn _he_ was the one turning red now.

“Not to mention you’re hot as hell,” Garrett chuckled, picking at his plate.

Anders’ eyes widened as he tried to think of a response, but nothing came out. Garrett thought _he_ was the hot one?

“Don’t look so shocked,” Garrett teased, nudging Anders’ foot again.

“I just…” Anders shook his head in disbelief. “Thank you? I would have used all the same words for you but I thought…I don’t know…”

“Don’t think, then,” Garrett shrugged, giving him another effortless smile.

He gestured to the server for the check, and Anders followed him out the door once it was settled. Garrett insisted on paying for them, since he was the one who asked Anders out in the first place, despite Anders’ protests.

“At least let me pay for the next one,” Anders laughed as they bumped shoulders on the way to the parking lot.

“The movies, right?” Garrett grinned back.

“Sure, we can do whatever,” Anders responded happily.

They made it to Anders’ car first and the pair stopped, Garrett looking at the ground as he stuck his hands in his pockets, shuffling his feet.

 _It’s like high school all over again_.

“Thanks for coming out with me,” Garrett began, almost shyly. “Best night I’ve had in a while.”

“Me too,” Anders murmured.

“I’ll text you soon,” Garrett smiled, finally looking at him.

Anders nodded. “We can work out the details for next time.”

“Or just talk,” Garrett chuckled. “I wouldn’t mind that, either.”

Anders was glad for the low light in the lot. At least it hid _this_ round of blushing.

“That would be good too,” he agreed with his own small laugh. “So, um…have a safe trip home?”

Garrett studied him for a moment and Anders felt his breath catch in his throat. After another beat Garrett leaned forward, cupping Anders’ face in his hand before pressing a soft kiss to his lips.

“You too,” Garrett murmured with a small smile. Anders was positive the other man could hear his heart thudding in his chest, but all he could manage to do was nod in return.

“Night, Anders,” Garrett waved, and headed off to find his own car.

“Night,” Anders called faintly after him.

He rushed to unlock his car, thumping his head against the headrest as soon as he was settled inside, closing his eyes with a grin.

 _He likes me_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still not at all sure how many chapters this is going to end up being, whether it will include smut or not, etc. (If there's anything YOU guys are hoping to see, feel free to let me know. I just have a general outline right now lol). Hopefully it won't take another year to figure it out.
> 
> For those of you who are still here after so long, and for any new readers, thank you and I appreciate any feedback <3


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anders' schedule is rude and won't let these lovebirds see each other

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm doing a preemptive rating change for future chapters (nothing happens in this one).
> 
> These two are so insecure.

**_Garrett:_** [image031.jpg]

 ** _Garrett:_** [image032.jpg]

 **_Garrett:_ ** _you’re missing a lot of fun today :(_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _t-bone misses you_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _I might too…_

Anders sighed, tucking his phone back in his pocket as he brushed a stray piece of hair out of his eyes. The clinic had unexpectedly lost one of their doctors due to an extended illness and two of their technicians due to school and a move, respectively, leaving them severely understaffed. Anders had been working overtime to help pick up the slack, which left him little time for anything else. Including Garrett.

The pair _had_ been texting more, and Anders was happy for that. They had settled into an easy rhythm with each other, although he still secretly thrilled every time he heard his phone ping with Garrett’s personal tone. Most of their conversations revolved around their jobs or generic “getting to know you” type of questions, although Garrett had definitely been hinting that he hoped their next date would be soon.

The worst part of his work schedule, though, was not being able to meet Garrett in the park for lunch. They had only seen each other once since their date, having to make do with silly photos and flirtatious comments in the meantime. While it came naturally to Garrett, Anders was proud that he was able to keep up, often reducing the other man to a string of emojis in response to whatever he said.

It wasn’t until two hours later that he had the chance to reply to Garrett’s last string of texts. He told one of the other techs that he needed a ten-minute break - that he hadn’t been outside all day and the processed air was getting to his sinuses. He sighed in relief when he was finally able to slip out back into the sunlight, resting his head against the building for a moment as the rays warmed him before he pulled out his phone.

 **_Anders:_ ** _I’m sorry :( you don’t know how much I’d rather be there_

He looked at photos Garrett sent properly this time. The first was of T-Bone proudly strutting with a branch twice his size held between his teeth. The second was a selfie of Garrett and T-Bone on the grass, the dog with his head tilted, looking up at Garrett adorably. Anders made sure he saved that one.

 **_Anders:_ ** _the pics are adorable btw_

 **_Anders:_ ** _I guess you are too :)_

He sighed again, not sure what Garrett’s schedule was like today. He might not be able to answer, which meant Anders probably wouldn’t be able to chat until that evening. The quiet ping that came a few moments later, however, brought a grin to his face.

 **_Garrett:_ ** _look who’s talking ;)_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _are you done work?_

 **_Anders:_ ** _I wish. Just escaped for some fresh air for a few minutes_

Just then, the door next to where he was standing flew open, Merrill looking around wildly for him.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, mentally kicking himself for not moving somewhere more unnoticeable.

“Oh, Anders, there you are,” she gushed, reaching out to pull his sleeve. “We have an emergency, we need you inside.”

Anders sighed, nodding his head before giving his phone one last glance.

 **_Garrett:_ ** _darn, I was hoping maybe we could grab a quick dinner_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _or I could maybe call you tonight?_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _I miss seeing that smile_

Anders barely had time to register the words, typing out a quick reply.

 **_Anders:_ ** _gotta go, sorry_

He shoved his phone into his pocket, took another deep breath of the fresh air and headed back inside.

* * *

Garrett stared at his phone, dumbfounded.

 _Gotta go, sorry_.

He knew he was probably being ridiculous, but he couldn’t help feeling a little hurt. Anders had been working almost non-stop since their first date and lately seemed to barely have time to chat. He knew the other man must be tired, but it didn’t stop him from worrying that maybe…maybe Anders just wasn’t into this as much as he was.

“Hey, buddy, where’s the line between being annoying and wanting to show someone you care?” he murmured to T-Bone, the dog lying at his feet chewing a bone.

Garrett sighed, telling himself he would send just _one_ more text and then the ball was in Anders’ court.

 **_Garrett:_ ** _let me know if there’s anything you need, okay? It’s no bother_

He stretched, checking one more time to make sure the dog was okay before curling up on the couch and falling asleep.

* * *

Anders wasn’t sure how he made it home in one piece, considering his eyes were barely staying open. The smart thing would have been to call someone to drive him home, but the idea of inconveniencing anyone was too much. Let alone the fact that waiting for them would mean spending one more minute in the clinic, and that was the last thing in the world he needed or wanted right now.

Pounce was waiting for him when he got home and his mood immediately lifted.

“How’s my big boy?” Anders cooed, picking the cat up and cradling him in his arms. Pounce just meowed in return, looking up at him with big saucer eyes.

Anders made his way into the kitchen, still cuddling the fat cat. He was pleased to see that Isabela had stopped by earlier to check on Pounce’s food and water situation and both were filled. There was also a note on the refrigerator door.

_I know you’re not eating! >:(_

_I left you some goodies in the fridge_

_xoxo Bela_

He let the now-squirming Pounce jump down before opening the door, grinning when he saw the contents inside. A small roasted chicken sat in its supermarket container alongside several other plastic containers full of side dishes. This would be enough food for lunch and dinner over the next couple of days. Provided he had enough time to sit down and eat.

 _I owe her_ , he mused as he piled his plate high with food. His mouth was practically watering at the smell, the hunger from not eating since breakfast now hitting him full force. He took a seat on the couch as he kicked off his shoes and turned on the TV, nearly letting out a sigh of relief at being comfortable for the first time that day.

He pulled out his phone after a few minutes, half his plate already devoured, and realized with a pang of panic that he had a missed text from Garrett.

“Fuck,” he muttered, closing his eyes in annoyance. The other man probably thought he hated him by now with as flaky as he'd been lately. _Way to screw things up already_.

He smiled, though, as he read the words, Garrett’s eagerness clearly showing through.

“I should have just called him, Pounce,” Anders sighed, scratching the cat who came to nuzzle his shoulder. It was late, but he had a feeling Garrett wasn’t asleep yet.

 **_Anders:_ ** _I’m so sorry, I just saw your message now_

 **_Anders:_ ** _today has been insane_

 **_Anders:_ ** _I appreciate your offer_

“’I appreciate your offer’? I sound like I’m talking to a fucking salesman.” Anders groaned, letting his head fall back against the couch. Garrett was going to break up with him, he was sure of it. Were they even dating?

 _Too late to find out now_ , he thought bitterly.

While he waited for a response, he decided to text Isabela before his good mood dissipated entirely.

 **_Anders:_ ** _thanks for the food <333 did I ever tell you I love you?_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _not nearly enough :( but ur welcome sweets_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _PLEASE tell that handsome man of urs to feed you_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _with more than just his man meat ;)_

Anders nearly choked on the forkful of rice he had just eaten, tears springing to his eyes as he coughed into a napkin. It took him a good three minutes before he was able to breathe properly again, let alone formulate a response.

 **_Anders:_ ** _GOD, BELA!! I almost choked!_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _on his man meat?_

 **_Anders:_ ** _STOP SAYING THAT omfg_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _relax, kitten <3_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _how r u?_

 **_Anders:_ ** _happy to be ALIVE, thanks_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _:D :D :D_

 **_Anders:_ ** _and I’m exhausted and very much appreciate you checking on Pounce and feeding us both_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _u work 2 much :(_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _can’t u take a day off?_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _ur man can’t be happy about that_

Anders sighed again before taking a long drink to soothe his throat, still scratchy from his coughing fit. Garrett couldn’t possibly be happy, he was well aware of that, but he also didn’t need Bela reminding him of the fact.

 **_Anders:_ ** _I’ll be surprised if he wants to see me again tbh_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _what?? why????_

 **_Anders:_ ** _I’m never around. I barely answer his texts. Why would he waste his time?_

Now he was putting himself in a bad mood for no reason. He clicked out of his conversation with Bela just to make sure he hadn’t missed a message from Garrett. His stomach sunk a little when he saw he hadn’t.

 **_Isabela:_ ** _b/c ur adorable?? and an a++ person_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _don’t put urself down sweets, ur amazing_

Anders smiled at his phone, thankful he had such a wonderful friend.

 **_Anders:_ ** _thanks, Bel. Hopefully he feels the same way_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _get some rest!!_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _and do NOT hesitate if you need smthng_

 **_Isabela:_ ** _call me when you have time to hang out <333_

 **_Anders:_ ** _I will :) and thanks again_

Anders placed his phone carefully on the couch next to him, well within his line of sight should he not hear it ring. With another sigh, he picked up his plate to finish his food.

* * *

 _That’s it,_ Garrett thought, staring at the message. _He’s being too polite. He doesn’t want this_.

He had been staring at the last few messages from Anders for nearly 15 minutes, unsure how he was supposed to reply. The fact that he got a message at _all_ was promising. He just wished it wasn’t so…formal.

He was still debating whether he should reply when the screen flashed, notifying him that Anders had sent another message. Fear gripped him for a brief second, wondering if this was going to be the break off text he was dreading.

 ** _Anders_ : **[image395.jpg]

 **_Anders:_ ** _Pounce says hi :)_

Garrett grinned at his phone, relief surging through his chest. The photo was of Anders – looking utterly exhausted, hair a mess and bags under his eyes – cradling his cat as they both looked into the camera. Anders had the cat’s paw raised as if he was waving. Garrett couldn’t even respond, frozen as he stared at the utterly adorable man.

“What are you grinning at?” came a voice from behind a second later. Carver walked over just close enough to see Garrett was smiling at his phone before he let out a horrified noise and backed away.

“Oh god, your boyfriend isn’t sending you dick pics, is he?”

“He’s not my _boyfriend_ ,” Garrett retorted. “I don't think. Yet. And no, it’s just his cat.”

“Uh huh,” Carver called from the kitchen. “Is that what they’re calling it nowadays?”

“I guess you wouldn’t know since you haven’t gone on a date in a century,” he shot back.

“I will have you know I have a date this weekend, thank you,” Carver replied smugly as he walked back into the living room. “And she’s very cute.”

Garrett sighed, looking at him sympathetically.

“Did Bethany set you up on a pity date with one of her friends again?”

Carver nearly spit out his drink, going red in the face as he glared at his brother.

“She didn’t…I was…that was _one time,_ ” he eventually choked out. Garrett bit his lip to keep from laughing as Carver slouched down in his chair, pointedly not looking at him.

“I’m just teasing you,” Garrett eventually said. “I’m sure she’s great.”

“Fuck off,” Carver muttered.

Garrett shrugged, small grin still on his face as he turned his attention back to his phone. T-Bone took that moment to trot into the room, looking between the two brothers hopefully. Carver patted his lap, and the much-too-large dog hopped up, draping himself across the man in contentment.

 **_Garrett:_ ** _hi pounce!! :D_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _you are adorable_

 **_Anders:_ ** _pounce or me? ;)_

Garrett giggled quietly at the response, earning another disgusted noise from the other side of the room.

 **_Garrett:_ ** _you, obviously ;)_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _but pounce is pretty darn cute too_

 **_Anders:_ ** _yes he is :D my orange ball of floof_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _are you going to bed soon? I know it’s late_

 **_Anders:_ ** _soon, I just wanted to say hi and maybe chat for a few :)_

Garrett grinned again before shooting a look at Carver, who was still very obviously focusing on the TV and not his side of the room. He bit his lip, thinking for a moment before standing.

“I’m going to head in,” he said. “Let T-Bone out one last time before bed?”

“Please shut your door, I don’t want to hear you.”

Garrett paused. “Hear me doing what? Sleeping?”

“Yeah,” Carver snorted, making a rude hand gesture. “ _Sleeping_.”

Garrett felt his face go red and he looked away, tempted to throw a pillow at his brother just to be obnoxious. But he didn’t want to accidentally hit his dog.

“I’m going to say goodnight and then sleep,” he responded through gritted teeth. “Get your head out of the gutter.”

Carver only snorted again, and Garrett bit his tongue as he made his way to his bedroom. The thought hadn’t even _occurred_ to him. He just wanted to talk to Anders with no disruptions.

 **_Garrett:_ ** _sorry, brother being a pain in the ass again_

 **_Anders:_ ** _no big deal :) I’m getting ready for bed anyway_

_**Anders:** these hours are killing me, I'm like a zombie_

Disappointment flooded his chest again. He didn’t realize how much he had been hoping for just a few more minutes.

**_Garrett:_** _I can imagine :(_

_**Garrett:** _ _I’m going to be at the park later tomorrow, client had to switch times_

**_Garrett:_ ** _any chance we could meet for lunch?_

He took a deep breath, willing himself not to get his hopes up too high since he had a feeling he already knew the answer.

 **_Anders:_ ** _what time?_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _closer to 2_

 **_Anders:_ ** _I’ll try my best :) but I’m not making any promises_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _I totally understand_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _but I’d love to see you_

 **_Anders:_ ** _yeah :)_

 **_Anders:_ ** _night Garrett_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _night :))_

Garrett sighed, tugging his shirt off as he flopped onto his bed. It was something, at least. And right now, something was going to have to be enough.

* * *

Anders’ hopes of meeting Garrett for lunch got slimmer and slimmer as the day went on.

“We need to either cut back the number of patients while we’re short-staffed or we need to bring in more help,” Anders told the receptionist at one point. He was nearing his wit's end, the line of animals never seeming to stop. He didn’t mean to come off as rude, but he knew he wasn’t the only one in dire need of a break.

“I’m trying,” the receptionist insisted. “But short of calling and canceling-" 

"We have to do  _something_ ," he interrupted. "It's not fair to anyone involved, including the animals."

"I'm trying to clear the schedule for Sunday..."

“I’m off on Sunday,” Anders blurted out. The idea of being there straight through the weekend was nearly unbearable. He needed at least _one_ day off.

“But—“

“I’m off on Sunday,” he repeated, more firmly this time. “And my shift ends at 3 pm on Saturday. I’m not staying late. Call in a doctor from another clinic, I’m sure someone will be happy for the overtime.”

He turned on his heels and walked back to the exam room where his next patient waited, supremely proud of himself. He was sure the doctor in charge would have a word with him over his outburst later, but he was standing his ground. Just because he was a resident didn’t mean he could get trampled upon. He needed a break.

With one last glance at his phone, he resolved to text Garrett if he wasn’t done with this patient in time. As much as he wanted to see the other man, the animals came first. He sighed, forcing a smile to his face as he flipped open the chart and entered the room.

* * *

Garrett sat on the park bench, trying in vain not to glance at his phone every ten seconds. It was a beautiful day, and the training session with the small terrier went very well, but all he could think of was Anders.

It was nearly 2:15 and, although not overly late, it was still past their meeting time and he hadn’t heard a word from the other man. He promised himself he would stick it out for another 15 minutes and if he hadn’t heard anything, he would reach out. While he didn’t have anywhere to be, other than returning the dog in an hour or so, he also wasn’t going to sit on this park bench and wait all day like some love-struck teenager.

 _You are totally a love-struck teenager,_ he thought glumly, twirling the phone in his hands. He was lucky this particular dog was well-behaved, as it sprawled under the bench, fast asleep while he waited.

The requisite 15 minutes passed, and Garrett stared at his phone. The only problem was, even if he sent Anders a message there was no guarantee he would _see_ it. If he was as busy as Garrett thought, there wasn’t any time for him to just pull out his phone and check his texts.

“Fuck it,” he muttered, opening their conversation box anyway.

 **_Garrett:_ ** _hey, just wanted to check and see if you were coming by?_

 **_Garrett:_ ** _totally understand if you can’t, but I wasn’t sure if I should hang around_

That was going to have to do. He sat back, sighing as he ran a hand through his hair. There was no sign of the attractive doctor – _almost doctor_ , he reminded himself – and he wondered just how long he should stay there before he started to look pathetic. Not that he thought anyone was paying attention.

After another ten minutes and no sign or response from Anders, Garrett gave up. He tried not to let his disappointment show as he bent down to gently shake the sleeping dog awake.

“Hey.”

Garrett bolted upright and spun around to see a very frazzled-looking Anders standing behind him, hands in his pockets and a tired smile on his face.

“Hey yourself,” Garrett replied, unable to stop the ecstatic grin that appeared on his own.

“Sorry I’m late,” Anders sighed, sitting on the bench. “I bolted out of there so fast I didn’t even check my phone or grab any lunch. I was in such a hurry to get here.”

He blushed slightly, giving Garrett another one of those shy smiles as he looked away. Garrett felt his insides churn with happiness, not caring that he looked like an eager puppy.

“I’m glad you did,” he finally replied. “I, um…I was hoping you’d show. I missed you.”

Anders flushed a little more at the words, a real smile on his face as he glanced quickly at the other man.

“Me too,” he murmured. “Sorry things have been so crazy, it’s just—“

“I really like you,” Garrett blurted out, a look of horror on his face a second later. Anders stared at him with his mouth open, blinking in shock.

“Sorry.” Garrett grimaced. He was going to scare the man off, he knew it.

“I just…really like you,” he finished lamely. “And I guess I thought you should know.”

To his surprise, Anders’ face brightened, and he turned to face Garrett a little more.

“I like you a lot, too,” he chuckled, playing with the hem of his shirt. “And I was wondering…”

He paused, looking up at Garrett nervously.

“I have off Saturday night, I was hoping maybe, um…”

“Yeah?” Garrett breathed. He found it achingly cute that Anders was this nervous.

“Would you…want to try a second date?”

Anders looked away, furrowing his brow like he was bracing himself for rejection.

“I would _love_ to,” Garrett replied with a laugh. Before he could stop himself, he leaned over and kissed Anders quickly on the cheek. The other man looked at him, eyes wide as his hand flew to the side of his face.

“Oh God,” Garrett croaked. “I’m sorry, I should have asked first, I was just so excited—“

His words were cut off as Anders leaned forward, pressing their lips together. When he pulled back, he was red in the face again, although smiling widely.

“You don’t have to ask,” he chuckled. “I just wasn’t expecting it.”

“Good,” Garrett sighed in relief.

The pair just looked at each other for a few moments, goofy smiles on their faces and completely oblivious to the world around them. Garrett was the first to break out of the trance, taking one of Anders’ hands in his.

“So…I’ll pick you up at 6:30?”

"Perfect."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still not sure how many chapters this will be total, but I do have at least two more outlined after this one. 
> 
> Thank you for being patient (although it's only been 2.5 months this time, not an entire year lmao). I hope you enjoy :)


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anders and Garrett go on their second date and clarify a few things about their relationship

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you wanted a ball of fluff, you came to the right place

The next couple of days flew by, work sufficiently distracting Anders enough that he barely had time to worry. While he was happy they had managed to find coverage for him on his days off, it didn’t stop the constant overflow of patients the days he _was_ there, and the week ended much as it began.

And, as much as he hated to admit it, he was glad for the distraction. The closer they got to the date, the more nervous he became – to the point of chastising himself for every fluttering in his stomach at the very idea of being alone again with Garrett. He knew it was ridiculous, but _he_ had done the asking this time, he felt like he was the one holding the reins. And he hadn’t been in this position for quite a while.

Garrett did everything possible to soothe his nerves, naturally, sending him cute, amusing texts periodically throughout the day. Some days he didn’t have a chance to even check them until he got home, but the string of photos and accompanying words always brought a smile to his face.

Such a chain was waiting for him when he finally staggered through the door to his apartment Friday evening.

 ** _Garrett:_** [image075.jpg]

**_Garrett:_ ** _I saw this cat on my way home_

**_Garrett:_ ** _I named him Mr. Smelly Pants since he was standing near a trash can_

**_Garrett:_ ** _I thought you would appreciate it :)_

**_Garrett:_ ** _I don’t think t-bone has ever been around a cat_

**_Garrett:_ ** _maybe he and pounce can become friends, we should introduce them!_

**_Garrett:_ ** _oh god, I’m already talking about blended families_

**_Garrett:_ ** _can I delete texts??_

**_Garrett:_ ** _pretend nothing after the cat photo ever happened_

Anders was laughing out loud by the time he got to the last message. He could just imagine the other man pouting at his phone, trying to think up something else clever to say.

**_Anders:_ ** _what a beautiful kitty! Although I doubt he smells, cats are very clean_

**_Anders:_ ** _and Pounce has never been around a dog, either_

**_Anders:_ ** _it could be fun for them to meet :)_

He smiled over at the cat in question, sitting on the other side of the couch and languidly licking his paws.

“Pouncey, how would you like a puppy brother?” he asked in a sing-song voice. He sighed a moment later, shaking his head. Now _he_ was as bad as Garrett…

He returned to a few new messages after his shower, opting to grab a plate of some of the food Isabela brought over before settling onto the couch, giving the phone his full attention.

**_Garrett:_ ** _I’ll let t-bone know :D_

**_Garrett:_ ** _he’ll be very excited_

**_Garrett:_ ** _how was work?_

**_Anders:_ ** _hectic, as usual, but not bad_

**_Anders:_ ** _how was your day?_

**_Garrett:_ ** _better, now that I’m talking to you ;)_

It was amazing how one cheesy pick-up line could bring such a flush to his cheeks, yet there he sat, face red and grinning widely.

**_Garrett:_ ** _have you decided what you want to do tomorrow?_

It was pretty much _all_ Anders had been thinking of the last couple of days, and he worried no matter what he picked, it wouldn’t be exciting or interesting enough. But at the same time, he knew how he was. Putting too much pressure on himself would only stress him out, and neither one would have a good time.

**_Anders:_ ** _I was thinking the movies?_

**_Anders:_ ** _and then maybe something after?_

**_Garrett:_ ** _oh? ;)_

Anders felt his face heat up even more, squeezing his eyes shut in embarrassment at the unintended innuendo. Not that he imagined Garrett _minded_ , but he didn’t want to resort to propositioning the man via text.

**_Anders:_ ** _I meant like food or something!_

**_Anders:_ ** _:((_

He sighed, resigned to eating his food as he waited for Garrett’s response.

* * *

Garrett grinned down at his phone, mind immediately jumping to all the “somethings” he’d like to enjoy with Anders after the movie. Although he was honestly surprised that the other man would make such a bold statement.

He wasn’t too disappointed, then, when he realized it was unintended. He could only imagine how red the blond’s cheeks must be, his face all scrunched together in worry. Not that he wanted Anders to be frustrated, but he was just so damn _cute_ when he got flustered. Maybe he should tell him that.

**_Garrett:_ ** _you are so cute when you’re flustered :)_

**_Anders:_ ** _am not!_

**_Garrett:_ ** _take my word for it lol_

**_Garrett:_ ** _I’m just teasing you anyway, a movie sounds great_

**_Garrett:_ ** _something in particular you want to see?_

He honestly had no idea what was even playing right now, it had been so long since he’d been to the theater. That was more Carver’s realm than his, but it would be a cold day in hell before he asked his little brother for dating advice.

**_Anders:_ ** _um…I don’t know lol_

**_Anders:_ ** _maybe we could decide when we get there?_

**_Garrett:_ ** _fine with me, I don’t even know what’s out lol_

**_Anders:_ ** _oh good, I’m not the only one!_

Garrett honestly didn’t care what they went and saw, he just wanted to spend more time with Anders. Especially now, knowing his feelings were reciprocated after his confession in the park.

While he felt like he could be a lot more… _open_ with his advances, he still didn’t want to run the risk of coming on too strong. More than once he had scared a potential partner off by moving too quickly, and he really didn’t want the same to happen with Anders. He was different in the best kind of ways, and something deep down told him he wanted this one to last.

**_Garrett:_ ** _definitely not! That’s fine with me_

**_Garrett:_ ** _although I still vote for horror_

**_Garrett:_ ** _:D_

**_Anders:_ ** _are you wiggling your eyebrows right now?_

**_Anders:_ ** _because I’m totally picturing you trying to make seductive faces through the phone_

Garrett burst out laughing, loud enough that T-Bone popped his head up to look at him in confusion. Anders knew him too well already.

**_Garrett:_ ** _I’m scandalized you would think that!_

**_Garrett:_ ** _I’m saving all my best seductive faces for tomorrow_

**_Anders:_ ** _mhmm…lol_

* * *

Anders chuckled to himself as he brought his now-empty plate to the sink, rinsing it off before adding it to the growing pile. He knew he needed to head to bed soon, but talking to Garrett made time go by so quickly, and it was easily the best part of his day.

Pounce had taken up residence on top of his phone when he returned to the living room, looking very put out when Anders gently pried it out from under the mass of fur. He saw he had a missed message and silently thanked the cat for not accidentally pressing any buttons with his little bean toes.

**_Garrett:_ ** _can I pick you up?_

**_Anders:_ ** _…is that a euphemism for something?_

**_Garrett:_ ** _a what?_

**_Garrett:_ ** _no I meant like, with my car_

**_Garrett:_ ** _vroom vroom_

Anders snorted picturing Garrett making those exact noises.

**_Anders:_ ** _I don’t want you to go to any trouble :) I can meet you_

**_Garrett:_ ** _it’s no trouble! I want to be a gentleman :D_

**_Anders:_ ** _you can hold the door open for me if you want_

**_Anders:_ ** _plus, I don’t even know where you live! I could be closer to the theater_

**_Garrett:_ ** _I really don’t mind_

**_Garrett:_ ** _it’ll make things easier, not worrying about parking or following each other after_

Anders smiled and lifted an eyebrow at his screen, wondering about the implications of that statement.

**_Anders:_ ** _where am I following you to?_

**_Garrett:_ ** _…._

**_Garrett:_ ** _crap, I didn’t mean that!_

**_Garrett:_ ** _I meant if we get food or something, like you said_

**_Anders:_ ** _I’m just teasing lol_

**_Anders:_ ** _but if you insist…_

* * *

Garrett grinned, relief overtaking him that Anders had agreed. They exchanged details – Garrett even giving Anders _his_ address, just to keep things fair – and after a few more minutes of chatting decided to call it a night.

He was nervous now, though, that he had made Anders uncomfortable. He was reasonably sure the man was only protesting his offer out of politeness, but he didn’t want it to seem like he was forcing the issue. He just wanted Anders to be impressed.

As he got ready for bed, he let his mind wander to the _other_ possibilities of the night. Like another kiss or five. Or ten. Maybe a little more than kissing, if he was lucky.

He shifted uncomfortably under the covers, not sure he wanted his thoughts wandering _that_ off-track. Yet. He still barely knew the man, and he wasn’t sure he’d even be able to look him in the eyes if he started down that rabbit hole. _Hey Anders, you’ll never guess what I fantasized about you doing to me in bed last night!_

That was definitely sure to not land him a third date. Better to keep it in his pants.

At least until Anders said otherwise.

* * *

“You can’t even _see_ him in the movie theater, sweets,” Isabela said the next day. Anders had invited – pleaded, actually – for her to come over and help him get ready for the date after another frazzling shift.

“Yeah but that’s okay,” Anders replied, flipping through his closet. “It’ll give me some time for my nerves to settle down. Then when we leave, I’ll be able to talk to him like a normal person.”

“Just _talk_?”

Anders glanced over his shoulder and saw her wiggling her own brows as she bit her bottom lip. He groaned, feeling his cheeks heat up again as he quickly turned back to his closet.

“Get your mind out of the gutter,” he chuckled. “I just thought it would be more…comfortable. We can watch the movie and get used to being around each other, and then if we decide to get food or something after we already have a built-in conversation starter.”

Isabela nodded, looking thoughtful.

“Not a bad plan,” she admitted. “But you’re _really_ going to tell me you’re okay with just another peck on the cheek when he drops you off?”

Anders was quiet for a few moments, finally pulling out two shirts that he held up for approval. Isabela nodded at the green one before fixing him with an impatient stare.

“I…I guess?” Anders sighed. “I don’t know. I’m trying to take things slow so I can make sure he’s decent.”

“He can still be decent and give a blowjob in the car.”

“ _Bela!_ ” Anders cried, covering his face with his hand as Isabela cackled from the bed. Great…now that’s all he’s going to be able to think about when he gets in Garrett’s car.

“You don’t need to be so _serious_ , kitten,” she said once she finally stopped laughing. “You can have fun without making him declare his undying love for you. Just…let loose. Seize the moment, and all that. Or his dick. Whatever works.”

“You’re impossible, you know that?”

“And _you’re_ adorable,” Bela retorted with a grin. She stood, planting a quick kiss on his cheek before they both walked to the door.

“You’ll be fine,” she reassured him. With one last hug, she opened the door, pausing briefly.

“That kiss better be the tamest one you get tonight.”

“Thank you, Bela!” Anders shouted, slamming the door to the sound of her laughter reverberating down the hall.

Pounce appeared a moment later, meowing quietly as he wove between Anders’ legs.

“You’re on my side, right?” Anders purred, picking him up and carrying him to the bedroom. Pounce wriggled free as soon as he saw the bed, curling up on top of his pillow.

Anders sighed, and with one last glance at the time began to get dressed.

* * *

Garrett arrived promptly at 6:30, texting Anders that he was outside his building. He was driving a different car than the last time Anders saw him, this one much flashier. He immediately remembered that Garrett had the money to waste on multiple cars and he frowned a little. If this was Garrett’s idea of impressing him, he was going to need to take a different approach because this one wasn’t going to work.

“Hey,” Garrett greeted, jumping out of the car as he saw Anders approach.

Anders gave him a small smile, greeting him in return. Before he could do anything else, Garrett had sprinted around the side, jumping in front of Anders to open the passenger side door.

“After you.” Garrett grinned, making a show of ushering him inside. Anders only chuckled, shaking his head as he got in.

“Where’s your regular car?” he asked once Garrett slipped into the driver’s seat.

“Ah, that one is kinda…covered in a thick blanket of dog hair,” the other man replied, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. “I wanted to get it cleaned, but I had two appointments this morning, so…” He shrugged.

Anders felt a wave of guilt come over him. Of course he wasn’t showing off his money; he just didn’t want Anders to be covered in dog hair the whole evening.

“It’s a nice car,” he finally said, giving Garrett a shy smile. The other man immediately perked up, grin once again lighting up his face.

“Thanks,” he said, pulling out of the parking lot. “It’s usually at my mom’s house. I only take it out on special occasions.”

“I’m a special occasion?”

Garrett reached over, taking one of Anders’ hands in his and squeezing it.

“The most special I’ve had in a long time.”

He glanced over at Anders, giving him his own slightly-shy smile before starting to pull his hand away. Anders tugged on it before he could, lacing their fingers together instead.

“I’m glad,” he replied quietly.

Garrett gave it another small squeeze, focusing on the road.

“Me, too.”

* * *

The theater was crowded when they arrived, as expected for a Saturday night. They stood off to the side of the ticket counter, trying to pick out anything that looked remotely interesting.

“I’ve never even _heard_ of half these movies,” Garrett groaned after a few minutes.

“Me neither,” Anders admitted with a sigh. He pulled out his phone, tapping in the name of a movie review site. “Want to just go down the list and see what jumps out at us?”

They moved to a nearby bench and sat, preparing to look through them all until they found one they liked.

“Look for a horror movie,” Garrett said immediately. He slid closer to Anders, wrapping an arm lightly around his waist and resting his chin on Anders’ shoulder.

Anders knew he had to be turning red as his stomach began flip-flopping again, but he made no move to shrug Garrett off. It was a nice feeling.

“No horror movies,” he replied with a small chuckle.

“But I told you, I want to get scared so you have to protect me.” Even though Anders couldn’t see it, he knew Garrett must have the most overdramatic pout on his face right now.

“You’re cuddling with me right now, you don’t need a scary movie,” he teased. “How about this one? It’s a romantic comedy.”

Garrett read the description, groaning a little at the plot. They went on that way for the next ten minutes, playful touches and comments interlaced between.

“Let’s just go see _Fist of the Maker_ ,” Anders sighed after a while. “Action movies have at least a little entertainment value, right?”

“I guess,” Garrett replied doubtfully. They both stood, Garrett taking a moment to languidly stretch, using the movement as an excuse to wrap an arm around Anders’ shoulders.

“Worst case scenario, we just make out during the rest of the movie,” he said casually, leading them to the ticket line. Anders snapped his gaze to the other man, Garrett looking straight ahead with a small smirk playing on his lips.

“That how you plan to ‘impress’ me?” Anders murmured, biting back the smile that threatened to break out on his own face.

Garrett leaned close, his warm breath tickling Anders’ ear.

“Just say the word, I’m sure we can find a nice, private spot.”

“Oh my god, Garrett,” Anders chuckled, gently elbowing him in his side. Garrett stood up straight, grinning openly now as they moved forward.

“Just giving you some options,” he teased.

“Oooh,” Anders cooed once they got closer. “It’s the theater with the nice seats. I’ve never been to one of these before.”

“Me neither,” Garrett replied. “But it sounds nice.”

They bought their tickets and joined the food line, Garrett insisting he _needed_ popcorn at the movies. Anders didn’t care one way or another but was cajoled into getting a box of candy for himself.

“You can have _one_ piece of popcorn, but that’s it,” Garrett warned as they walked to their theater.

Anders gave him a sidelong glance, unsurprised that Garrett already had a piece of popcorn in his beard. He reached over and plucked it out, tossing it at Garrett’s head.

“That counts as your piece!” Garrett cried, Anders bursting into laughter as he held the door open for the man and his mountain of food. They walked to the front, somewhat surprised at the lack of other moviegoers in the room.

“Uhh…I guess we didn’t really need to pick our seats,” Anders commented, looking around the nearly empty theater.

“At least we know we have good ones.” Garrett shrugged, leading them up the stairs to the very top row.  

“The movie _has_ been out for a few weeks,” Anders said as they sat. “I guess it wasn’t good enough to keep the crowds coming in for a repeat view.”

The regular theater chairs had been replaced with recliner armchair-type seats. A middle armrest could be moved up for a more loveseat-like experience. Theirs was down, separating the chairs, and neither moved to lift it. They did put their drinks on opposite sides of their seats, though, leaving the option open.

“Better for us,” Garrett replied with another grin. “I was just joking about the popcorn, by the way. You can have two.”

“You’re so generous,” Anders laughed, rolling his eyes. “Consider me _thoroughly_ impressed.”

Garrett’s eyes widened with alarm, seemingly forgetting his intended goal of the evening.

“Three popcorns!” he cried, grabbing a handful and putting them in Anders’ hand. “I’m sorry!” Anders burst out laughing, tossing them at Garrett’s face.

“I don’t want your popcorn,” he laughed. “And you can just say ‘pieces,' not ‘popcorns.’”

“’Popcorns’ sounds funnier,” Garrett pouted. “I need to be funny to impress you.”

“You already have,” Anders replied lightly, toying with the armrest. Garrett watched his movements with interest as Anders lifted it slightly and let it drop on its own. He did that several times before Garrett eventually reached over, taking it from Anders’ hand and placing it all the way back where it stayed on its own.

“That okay?”

“Yeah,” Anders murmured, looking down at his lap as he played with the hem of his shirt. He was thankful for the dark lighting that hopefully covered his blush.

Neither of them said anything for a few minutes as they watched the pre-previews. Garrett had devoured nearly half of his bucket of popcorn before he thought to offer Anders any.

“I really was just joking,” he said sheepishly, holding the bucket out. “You can have as much as you want. The rest, even.”

Anders shook his head, smiling.

“I’m good,” he replied. “You enjoy your five tons of popcorn.”

“It’s probably four tons, at most,” Garrett scoffed before shoving another handful into his mouth. Anders only chuckled again, a happy warmth spreading through his chest. The movie hadn’t even started yet and he could already feel his nerves fading away.

The previews started a few minutes later, the lights dimming, sending a spike of excitement through them both. Only one or two more people had entered the theater since they arrived, bringing it to a grand total of about ten.

Garrett, true to his word, finished his popcorn about 15 minutes into the movie. Anders gave him an incredulous look, and though he doubted Garrett could actually see it, the other man gave him a small shrug, as if to say ‘I told you so.’”

It only took another few minutes for them to realize the movie was going to be awful. Between the bad acting, horrible dialogue, and completely unbelievable action scenes, they were groaning in disbelief by the half-hour mark.

“No one should be able to do that!” Garrett hissed, waving his hand wildly at the screen. “This isn’t even realistic!”

“I could totally jump off of a 40-story building and do a backflip onto a jet that’s inexplicably flying through Manhattan,” Anders scoffed, causing Garrett to burst into laughter. He leaned over, batting his eyes dramatically.

“Will you save me, brave almost-doctor?”  

Anders laughed, shoving him away.

“I don’t know…” He pretended to think. “I guess we’ll see how much you can convince me.”

“Is that an invitation?” Garrett asked with another grin.

Anders didn’t reply, laughing again and shaking his head slightly.

“Let’s try to give this award-winning movie at least a _little_ bit of a chance to get better.”

Garrett slumped in his seat with a groan.

“You _know_ it won’t!”

“We can still make it fun,” Anders replied. “Let’s try and guess what happens next.”

With only a few sneaking glances to check how much time was left in the movie, they spent the next hour laughing and giving running commentary on the movie. The few people in the theater were far enough away that they didn’t seem to care about the unruliness coming from the back.

“Isn’t it funny how we’re an hour and a half into this movie and we’ve barely seen any fist fighting?” Garrett mused.

“I just assumed the ‘fist’ was symbolic or something,” Anders replied, shifting a little in his seat. “You know, like the symbolic rating the critics gave this piece of crap.”

Garrett snorted. He glanced at Anders after a moment, as if weighing a decision. Anders tried not to look back, feeling the tell-tale flush on his neck start to appear under the scrutiny. He was distracted a second later, however, when Garrett closed the last bit of space between them, wrapping an arm around his shoulders again and pulled him close.

“This okay?” Garrett murmured.

Anders nodded and without thinking twice, shifted himself so he could rest his head on Garrett’s shoulder, cuddling closer to his side. He loved the feeling of being wrapped up in the other man’s arms and without realizing it, let out a little sigh of contentment. He could feel the low rumble as Garrett hummed in approval, squeezing him a little tighter.

A particularly bad explosion interrupted his thoughts and he burst out laughing, Garrett joining a second later. He craned his neck up slightly so Garrett could hear him without his voice muffled in the man’s shirt.

“I can’t even bel—“ he began, sentence cut off as Garrett suddenly pressed their lips together. It took him a second to catch on before he tangled his fingers in Garrett’s hair, kissing him back. They stayed that way for a bit before Garrett pulled back, breathing heavily as he smiled.

“Sorry, you just…”

“You don’t need to apologize,” Anders interrupted, pulling him so they were partially reclined on the seats before kissing him once more. He shifted so one leg was draped over the side, the other across the cushions so Garrett could fit – as well as he could, anyway – between his legs.

These kisses were much more frantic, Garrett periodically nipping at his bottom lip and running his hands along Anders’ sides. He would let out small noises that went straight to Anders’ dick and he prayed the other man didn’t notice.

Eventually Garrett pulled back, face flushed and hair a mess as he stared down at Anders. He imagined he must be in at least a similar state, if not worse. But he found he didn’t mind at all, smiling back up at the larger man.

“We should probably stop,” Garrett sighed, closing his eyes. “Otherwise I’m going to have your pants off and cock in my mouth in the middle of the theater and I don’t think either one of us wants to get arrested.”

Anders bit his lip, shifting his eyes away. Part of him wanted to scream _I don’t care_ and pull Garrett back on top of him. The aching in his pants was nearly unbearable now, and he had an inkling Garrett was feeling the same way.

“I guess you’re right,” he said reluctantly. “Plus, I think the movie’s over.”

Sure enough, the sound of the closing music began playing as the screen faded to black and the house lights came up a few seconds later. They both sat up quickly before anyone could see them, Garrett letting out a small chuckle.

“Your hair is a mess,” he grinned.

“Look who’s talking,” Anders snorted in reply. Garrett’s hair was much shorter than his but it was sticking up at all angles. Their eyes met and they both burst into laughter, attempting to smooth out their hair and clothing.

They walked out the theater silently, swinging their hands between them. Garrett’s car wasn’t far and they both paused in front when they reached it.

“I, um…don’t really feel like going home yet,” Garrett said, looking at the ground somewhat shyly. “Are you…tired or anything?”

“I’m always tired,” Anders teased, giving his boot a little kick. “But I really don’t want to go home yet, either.”

Garrett’s face lit up and Anders couldn’t help the wide smile that broke out on his face.

“There’s a diner not far from here,” Garrett said. “Close enough we can walk. Maybe we could just…I don’t know, get something to eat and chat?”

“That sounds great,” Anders replied, breathing a small sigh of relief. He wasn’t overly familiar with this part of town and realized he didn’t really have any suggestions of where to go.

They walked the short distance to the diner, which was thankfully only about half full. It probably wasn’t a normal date night destination for most, but seeing the number of teenagers and other couples made Anders smile. He felt like he was in high school all over again, finally out on the town with his crush.

Garrett led them to a booth in a far corner and they both settled in, giving each other shy smiles before picking up their menus.

“Do you even have any room left after all that popcorn?” Anders asked, smirking over his menu at the other man.

“Sure hope so, cause this double patty burger is calling my name,” Garrett replied with a grin of his own.

They spent the next couple of hours leisurely chatting while they ate their food, talking about everything from the ridiculous movie to their families to their plans for the future.

“Do you plan on staying in Kirkwall once you finish school?” Garrett asked, using a fry to mop up the last of the ketchup on his plate. Anders could tell he was trying to look casual, but the way his eyes kept flicking over to his said otherwise.

“I’d like to,” he replied truthfully. “But it’ll obviously depend on where I get offered a job.”

“I’m pretty sure this place won’t let you go without a fight,” Garrett snorted. “They love you there.”

Anders shrugged bashfully, taking a sip of his drink. Would it be too forward to tell him that Garrett had suddenly added a whole new reason to want to stay in town?

“Maybe I’ll open my own clinic,” he said instead. “I’d like to be able to help pet owners that can’t always afford the bills.”

Garrett smiled, propping his chin in his hand as he stared at the man.

“You’re amazing, you know that?”

Anders nearly choked on his drink, face burning as he let out a nervous chuckle.

“I’m not, really,” he replied. “I just like to help.”

“Which automatically makes you better than a lot of people,” Garrett said, still making puppy dog eyes at him from across the table. “Take my word for it.”

“So, um…” Anders began, clearing his throat and hoping he could deflect the attention away from himself. “Do you want to get dessert?”

“Nah,” Garrett replied, finally sitting back up. “It’s getting pretty late, I want to be able to sleep tonight.”

Anders glanced at the time, realizing it was nearly 11:30. He was amazed at how awake he still felt, usually passed out much earlier than this on any other night. The adrenaline would probably wear off as soon as he got home, but he was thankful for it now. He didn’t really want the night to end, but they didn’t have many options at this point.

Unless, of course, he invited Garrett back to his apartment.

He fiddled with his napkin, weighing the possibilities. His gut was telling him to take it slow. It was only their second date, after all, and some small part of him was honestly afraid that Garrett would disappear as soon as he got in his pants.

His brain was telling him otherwise. Along with a certain other body part, which twitched minutely at the thought. He also thought of Isabela’s advice. Maybe he _could_ have his cake and eat it too.

“Anders?”

He startled, looking up to see Garrett staring at him with a worried frown.

“You were kinda off in space,” he chuckled.

“Sorry,” Anders replied, grinning sheepishly.

“Want to head home?”

 _Not really_ , Anders thought. He nodded instead, Garrett asking for the bill. They walked in near silence back to the car, an air of either tension or anticipation – he couldn’t tell - surrounding them. He could see Garrett sneaking looks at him as they made their way to his car, but he kept his eyes trained elsewhere.

Things were quiet even as they got in the car, Garrett putting the key in the ignition but not starting it.

“Did I do something wrong?”

Anders raised his eyebrows, blinking in surprise. Garrett was biting his lip, and the look of pure terror made Anders’ heart ache.

“No,” he replied, reaching out to take his hand. He gave it a small squeeze, smiling. “I just got lost in my own head, sorry.”

Garrett frowned, obviously not believing him.

“If I made you uncomfortable in the theater, I’m really—“

“Do you want to come home with me?” Anders blurted out. He took a deep breath, breaking eye contact.

“I, uh…” Garrett stammered. “I…yes. Definitely yes. But…I don’t think I should.”

“What?” Anders frowned. “Why?”

“Can I give you the ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ line?” he asked, chuckling. “I just…I really like you. _Really_ like you. And I’ve made some mistakes in the past, going too fast.”

He took Anders’ hand in both of his, running his thumb over the back.

“I don’t want you to think I’m only in this for the sex. I don’t want to screw this up.”

Anders stared at him for a few moments longer before bursting into laughter. He could see through the pale light shining through the windshield that Garrett was blushing, an unsure smile on his face.

“That’s…I just…” Anders began, shaking his head. “I was worried about the exact same thing.”

“That I would think you only wanted sex?” His face was now scrunched up in confusion.

“No, that, uh…that _you_ might only want sex.” He felt horrible admitting it, and based on the hurt look that briefly flashed across the other man’s face he thought maybe he shouldn’t have said anything at all.

“I didn’t really believe it,” he added quickly. “I’ve just…I told you I haven’t done this in a while. And you’re so good looking and have so much going for you…I might be a little paranoid.”

He looked down, playing with an errant thread on his pants with his free hand.

“I really like you, too,” he continued, voice a near whisper. “I don’t want to screw this up. By going too fast _or_ too slow.”

“I don’t really see it as too slow,” Garrett replied with a small shrug. “I just want you to be comfortable.”

“Thanks.” Anders smiled, giving his hand another squeeze. “I’m glad we got this talk out of the way now before things became awkward.”

“Me? Awkward?” Garrett scoffed with a smirk. “Never.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to thank past me for writing this over the summer so that you all don't have to wait until my mental breakdown is complete (I'm getting better, I promise) before you see anything new from me. 
> 
> Thank you all who are still hanging in there with me, I appreciate it more than you know. I WILL be back to tumblr eventually, I can also promise that. It's just very overwhelming right now (or, well, it always is, but at least I used to be able to handle it lol). 
> 
> That said, I hope you enjoy this <3 I know I have several ongoing chaptered fics right now, and I have chapters for all of them started/in process (or in the case of CL, close to finished) so hopefully you'll be seeing more of me soon :) You guys are awesome.
> 
> Edited to add: I am 100% Garrett with the popcorn here. My mom has said on more than one occasion that everyone needs to experience me eating popcorn at least once in their lives because it’s that impressive. I just really like popcorn.


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